Do I need a baby monitor?

[babyconverse]

Do I need one? Baby is only 3 months so still in with us for now. If we do get one are the angel care ones worth it or are there alternative features that would be better to prioritise?

Thanks in advance for your views!

[Nicknamegrief]

I've never had one ..... Always have heard the baby (of which there have been 4).

[SparklyTinselTits]

I've had one from when DD started taking naps upstairs on her own, at about 3mo.
I had an angelcare one originally, but once she started rolling, the alarm would go off if she moved off the sensor pad and scare me to death
I've got a Motorola video one now and I love it

[Flingingmelon]

I used one for two months, then moved into another house where you could hear a pin drop in the nursery from the living room. We never got it out of the box.

It depends on the layout of your house and how laid back you are.

[Ragwort]

I never had one ........... I really don't see the point unless you live in a mansion - the funniest thing ever was when I went to visit a friend who lived in a very small flat, the sitting room was right next to the bedroom and she proudly showed me the monitor - it wasn't one of those fancy ones that monitored breathing/video or anything like that, she just obviously thought 'she must have a monitor'.

[lornathewizzard]

We haven't used one but our bedroom/livingroom is close to DDs bedroom so we hear her. Depends on your house set up and how light a sleeper you are I think.

[howabout]

I never had one but agree you might want one if you live in a big house with good soundproofing.

[Tfoot75]

We still use ours with sensor mat now and DD is 2.5. It is really useful to know she is in bed and not wandering about. Yes you can hear loud crying all over a silent house but who wants to keep muting the tv when you think you've heard something or watching films with volume on low - much easier to just have a monitor imo if you want to relax.

I can count on one hand the number of times the mat has false alarmed (out of c700 nights of use!). Great for peace of mind.

[Topsyloulou]

We have an angelcare monitor with sensor mat. House is solidly built, all brick walls & lots of insulation so with doors shut & tv on I wouldn't necessarily hear DS. It's also great in the summer, you can be out in the garden in the evenings & still hear & see him. Having the video is great so you can check before you go up if he's ok or you need to go in. Nowadays he's normally lost his dummy but very quickly finds it himself again. We don't use the mat now as he's such a wriggler but it was reassuring when he was a newborn.

[Gillian1980]

We have a second hand video monitor and use it all the time. We have to keep the bedroom doors closed as we have lots of cats and they'd love to cuddle up in the cot given the chance and you can't hear a thing from downstairs or down again (3 stories).

Like a pp said, depends on the layout of your house and how anxious you are.

I'm not keen on the angel pads though as I've heard they are prone to false alarms which can make anxious parents even more anxious.

[Only1scoop]

Yes I would

Had a BT one with temperature on and lovely lullaby's still use them now!!